Chapter 389

The headquarters, a converted Gran Cappadocia, was larger and more complex than I expected.
Escape routes and shelters were set up in case of attack.
Lanterns made of luminescent moss and gemstones served as light sources in areas where sunlight was not available.
“I see, Adeshan, you said he had lived three lives–somehow he was so gifted–that he had such a secret.”
“Yes. He’s going to marry me when he gets back.”
“Hoo hoo, what a matching pair, she had such fine black hair.”
Navarordze smiled.
We were standing side by side on the shoulders of cave giants, chatting.
I’ve said it all.
A regression that happened at the same time as the kiss, a blood clot with Nebula Clazier.
Eventually, a favor from Sarante from the future.
Despite the constant barrage of criticism, at least in fiction, Navarro was not surprised or embarrassed.
“You’re too trusting. You don’t think I’m crazy, do you?”
“What’s not to believe at this point?
I’m assuming you’re from another world, which explains your current situation.
You have no idea how much lighter I feel.”
“That’s interesting, you say you’re lighter—.”
Honestly, I couldn’t tell from the looks of it.
Maybe it’s just me, but I can’t believe anyone would call that monstrosity lightweight.
It’s the same old, same old, but different–eh, shit.
This is not the time to be thinking about this.
‘I’m glad we got it before it was too late.
Again, I liked this dragon.
It wasn’t just a crush limited to a specific body part.
I liked his generosity in letting me stick my finger in my mouth and his open-mindedness without being a jerk.
Any other dragon would have reduced me to ashes immediately.
“Ronan. You said peace has come to your world, and those who were destined to die have been spared.”
“Well, yeah, it’s not like there aren’t any victims.”
I nodded, keeping my eyes down at my feet.
Many lives were lost, but nothing compared to this side of the world.
After a pause, Navarordze spoke up.
“Then have you ever met—have you ever met my children?”
“Oh, sure.”
“——!”
“He’s even attending our academy, and he’s made a lot of friends, and he’s becoming more and more of a contributor.”
Navarordze’s youngest son, Itargand, was still enrolled at Pileon Academy.
Apparently, he’s adapted so well that he’s running for student body president this year.
“——You really do come from a parallel world, don’t you? You know the nickname that only I and the child use, and you say that Ir is friendly with humans—?”
Navarordze bit his lower lip.
His crimson eyes were glazed over with moisture.
I slapped my forehead, realizing I hadn’t been very subtle.
Damn, I shouldn’t have said that.
“That’s–I’m sorry.”
“No, no, no. Keep coming back. What about the other children? Do you have a connection to them?”
“Hmm–I haven’t met everyone, either. Oh, Brachios? I’m familiar with her, I met her in Dreammoor.”
“You mean Bnihardo. He’s proud and tries to hide how hard he works. It seems like just yesterday I was licking him when he hatched from his egg–ahhhhh, I miss him.”
Navarordze laughed.
The tears that had been pent up trickled down her cheeks.
I reached for the hem of my coat, and she wiped the tears from her eyes as if she’d been waiting.
“All my children are dead. They died trying to help this wretched mother. Only I survived and fled to the land beyond the light.”
“Don’t tell me you ran away.”
“Not a day–not a single night did I sleep peacefully. The wounds from their spears were nothing compared to what really hurt me—the children who had become stars and the horror of not being able to see them.”
I muttered an expletive under my breath.
In the destroyed world, there was no right to gaze at the stars.
The sky and earth were pale, devoid of any color, and the water was blood-red.
“But—are all the children alive in your world—?”
“Yep. Every single one of them–cluck!”
It was a moment of decisive nodding.
Navarordze suddenly pulled me into a bear hug.
My lungs crushed and I choked.
“Thank goodness. I’m so glad—.”
“Me, Navarrozze–oh, I’m dying, I’m dying, I’m dying.”
“I’m so happy right now, I can’t stop crying.”
Navarordje sobbed, burying his face in my chest.
I could feel my clothes getting damp.
She was genuinely pleased.
Children you can’t even see, let alone touch.
I scrunched up my nose.
“Oh, really.”
Maybe it’s because I’m about to become a dad myself.
Her desperation was understandable, even as she was in danger of suffocation.
I wordlessly patted her on the back.
How long has it been.
After a long moment, Navarrozze shook his head.
“——kheung.”
“Did you all cry?”
“First of all—Oh my God. I can’t believe you’re dressed like this.”
Navarrozze clamped his mouth shut.
My top was soaked through like I’d been swimming.
In human form, the sheep would have died of dehydration.
Fidgeting, she snapped her fingers.
Voila!
With a cheerful sound, my body was engulfed in warmth.
“Oh.”
“Mee, I’m sorry, I’m not feeling emotional, so can you stop—can you pretend you didn’t see it just this once?”
Navarordze’s face was red as if it would explode at any moment.
Steam trickled up my heated cheeks.
I didn’t realize that was actually possible, not in a comic book.
“What the heck, if you’re sad, you can cry.”
“Well, I still shouldn’t have done this—what child would trust me and follow me if their leader looked like this?”
“I think you’d like that, especially with a guy like Orsay.”
“You are so—!”
I crossed my arms behind my head and laughed.
The steam rising over Navarro’s face thickened.
She coughed, unable to speak.
“Hmmmm, I understand your situation. Invaders from this world have crossed over to your world in the future and are wreaking havoc, and you need to stop them, right?”
“Exactly.”
“And in order to do that, we have to destroy all the rifts between the world and the world—good.”
Navarordze nodded.
His face was definitely brighter after wiping away all the tears.
Rolling up the sleeves of her dress, she said in a confident voice.
“I’ll help in any way I can. A world that has barely regained its peace must not be invaded, not for the sake of my children who will live there.”
“Thank you.”
“Only–I’m concerned about this wizard you mentioned, Akasha, because we’ve never met. It would have been helpful to you if we had met.”
This was a surprise.
Navarro and the rest of the resistance had never seen Akasha before.
I definitely need to pay more attention.
I’ve made people come to me for help in the future, so it’s not like I’m an easy enemy.
When the conversation stopped, there was silence.
The echoing footsteps of the king of the cave giants were all that could be heard.
I shook my head in disbelief.
“But where are we going?”
The giant was walking down a long passageway.
The slope was gentle but winding like a maze.
The deeper we went, the fewer luminescent lichens there were, and the darker it got.
“It’s the most important place in this headquarters. Take your time and we’ll get there.”
“What do you mean, most important, over there where the sun is?”
“Not to put too fine a point on it, but there’s actually–there’s one more secret I haven’t told you.”
Ilsun Navarordze’s face turned serious.
Her gaze was not on me, but on the darkness ahead.
“Secret?”
“It’s something few in the Resistance know. My power isn’t the only thing that keeps this place alive. Down there is the stone that has helped me all these years.”
Navarordze stretched out his index finger.
I narrowed my eyes at the unintelligible words.
Stones out of nowhere?
She stared ahead, silent, then spoke.
“—is too slow for you, so why don’t you just go with magic?”
“Well, I guess that would be better.”
“Good. But hold me tight. This stone is so powerful that it distorts the magic field around it. If I make a mistake, it could split into different parts of my body and metastasize.”
“Yes?”
I was about to ask what that meant.
Grabbing my wrist, Navarrozze began listing off words that sounded like incantations.
I already had a bad feeling that this was coming from an author whose magic is done with the flick of a finger.
“Wait a minute, damn it. We just need to be safe—”
“Okay, let’s go.”
At that moment, Navarordze’s spell was fulfilled.
A wave of disgust washed over me, like rolling my entrails in an oak barrel.
I didn’t even have a chance to say something was wrong.
My eyes went white, and then I blacked out.
****
The surroundings brightened.
“Gahhhhh!”
I jerked myself up with a strangled crow-like scream.
The first thing I did was to make sure my limbs were well attached to my body.
Luckily, all four pairs stayed together.
“Holy shit, what the hell did you do!”
The next thing I know, I’m screaming.
For the moment, it didn’t matter who they were.
Even if my parents had survived, they would have criticized me just as viciously as they do now.
It can’t really be wrong, right?
I’ve experienced a lot of spatial traveling magic in my life, but I’ve never felt anything like this.
“Woof.”
The answer came from around the corner.
I turned my head and saw Navarordje leaning against the stone wall, gagging.
The corners of my eyes were still damp from the day I’d already cleaned them.
“What. Are you okay?”
“Whoa—yes. I’m sorry, I’m just being ugly today.”
“If it was that dangerous, you could have just taken a ride.”
“That’s true, but–I can’t help but feel impatient, it’s hard to explain, I just feel like I have to show you this stone.”
Navarordze took my hand and stood up.
Judging by the whiteness of his complexion, it was clear that he hadn’t had a very different experience than me.
It was only in hindsight that I realized what was going on around me.
“This is—.”
“Isn’t it beautiful, this is the deepest place in the den.”
She was right.
It felt like we were in the ground, and the atmosphere was completely different from the resistance’s headquarters.
The vast cavity was covered with ores I’d never seen before.
Pinks and purples, and greens that are more like blues.
The rock formations grew in different shapes, shedding dreamy colors and casting a faint glow.
The colorless stone stood in the middle of it all.
“Is that it?”
“Oh yeah. You recognized it right away.”
I pointed to the stone, and Navarrozze giggled.
It was definitely out of the ordinary.
The concentration of mana was so thick that the space around him seemed distorted.
I walked toward it as if mesmerized by something.
The strange rocks did not grow out of the ground like stalagmites, but floated microscopically in the air.
“Where have I seen this before?
For a moment, I felt uncomfortable.
The stone looked strangely familiar.
It was a moment of subconsciously placing my hand on the surface.
A tingling sensation shot through my body like static electricity.
His legs gave out and his body buckled.
“——!!”
“What is it, why?”
Navarrozze barely managed to keep himself from falling.
Goosebumps broke out all over my body.
I once encountered this rock.
In the temple Sarante controlled, in my mind’s eye, in the world I entered for the release.
In the white space where you stayed after the fight with Abel.
It was absurdly weak, but it was unmistakable.
My breathing ragged, I recited the stone’s name.
“—Seniel.”